CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
ALEX DAVALO
One guy, one girl? Not for us!
“Are you angry with me, Alex?” Bethany asked, her voice trembling slightly. Her brow was furrowed, and the way she bit her lip suggested that she was both nervous and serious. I could tell that she was genuinely concerned, but all I could manage was a quick shake of my head.
“No,” I just said, avoiding contact with her searching eyes. I focused instead on the floor tiles’ grey pattern, trying not to get lost in the depths of her hazel gaze.
“Then why are you avoiding me?” she countered, clearly unimpressed with my response. I could feel a knot tightening in my stomach. I didn’t want to be here, in the aftermath of a confrontation I had been dreading for days.
“Nothing,” I responded, quickly pushing past her as the bell rang, signaling the end of class. My mind whirled with thoughts of Sandro, who was already waiting for me outside. I needed to get out of this building and away from the tension Bethany was creating.
But as I made my way to the door, Bethany blocked my path. “Alex, please! Can’t we just talk?” she insisted, stepping closer, her voice almost pleading.
I sighed heavily, exasperated. “Bethany, I’ve got to go,” I said, my tone coming off colder than I intended. I could see her frustration growing, but I felt a strange mix of guilt and relief. Just a few days ago, everything seemed fine between us. But now, every time I saw her smile, I felt trapped. I needed to make things clear once and for all.
“Why do you always do this? Is it so hard to just be honest?” she pressed on, and all I could feel was a tightening band around my chest. My heart raced, grappling with my feelings. Why couldn’t she just let it go?
“Why don’t you just say what you mean?” I snapped, finally raising my gaze to meet hers. The vulnerability in her eyes made my heart ache, though I was too caught up in my thoughts to recognize it entirely.
“What do you mean?” she asked, tilting her head in confusion, clearly taken aback by the abrupt change in my tone. It seemed we were just bouncing around the same few questions, like a ping-pong ball bouncing endlessly.
“Well, I have no idea what I mean,” I said, with a hint of sarcasm in my tone.
“Say you’re tired of me, Alex!” she almost shouted, her voice cracking slightly as anger sparked within.
“Fine!” I shot back, summoning the courage to look straight at her, feeling the heat of the moment surge through me. “You want to know why I’ve been avoiding you!? I’ll tell you! First, I don’t love you! I have never loved you, Bethany. I’m a playboy, and I cannot be tied to you or anyone else. I just want to leave my life and do my thing.”
There, I said it. The words hung in the air, thick with unspoken history, accusations, and harsh truths. I could see the color drain from her face, leaving her pale, a look of shock washing over her like cold water. “This is why I never bothered to ask you about the guy you were kissing in front of the grocery store the other day.”
My words lingered, and the silence grew heavy. Her expression shifted from shock to something resembling anger and betrayal.
Boy, did I care?
No way!
“Oh, you must have thought no one saw you,” I scoffed, feeling fueled by adrenaline. “I was there. I saw everything the whole time. But I never said a word because I don’t give a fuck who you fuck around with! I don’t care whose dick graces your pussy!
I mean to me, you are just acting the part of a girlfriend so my father stops with the mate talk. It’s nothing more, so I don’t exactly owe you anything either!”
She flinched as if I had physically struck her. “You’re hurting me with your words, Alex,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper, almost crying out.
“And I will hurt you more if you don’t stop making everyone think that we share a bond.” I stepped closer, the tension rising. “You’re not my girlfriend or mate, and you can never be.”
“Then I will tell your father that you and your brother have been fooling him all along,” Bethany threatened, her teeth gnashing in sheer fury, the sudden confidence in her voice startling me.
“You won’t do that!” I exclaimed, my tone sounding defiant even to my ears.
“Dare me!” she shot back, an edge of ferocity surprising even me. The mention of my father, who was tough as nails and didn’t take kindly to secrets, made my heart race.
“You think I’m going to let another take you from me? No way! Either I have you, or no one else will!” she threatened, stepping closer, invading my personal space.
How did she entirely avoid the part where she had been kissing another guy?
Just when I thought she might hurt me more verbally, she leaned in closer and whispered in my ear, “I am not afraid of the wolf raging inside you.”
She pulled away, flashing a smug smile that completely blindsided me, before turning and walking out of the classroom, leaving me stunned. My mind raced as I processed everything-what had just happened?
Once outside, I brushed a hand through my hair, trying to make sense of it all. Sandro was waiting by the front doors of the school as if he had been counting down the minutes. He spotted me and raised an eyebrow, a playful grin on his face. “What took you so long?”
I shrugged, “Just had a little chat with Bethany about what we, or what she thinks we are”
He looked intrigued. “What did she say? Have you cleared the air? For real?” His voice peaked in excitement.
“She threatened to tell Father about us,” I said, biting the inside of my cheek, my brow furrowing.
Sandro’s expression changed immediately, eyes widening. “Do you think she means it? Do you think she’s going to tell him?”
“She knows better than to cross that line,” I said, trying to sound more composed than I felt. Though deep down, a part of me recognized the uncertainty lurking in my mind.
“What about your girlfriend, Lara?” I asked, attempting to change the subject, to latch onto something more carefree and ridiculous.
He rolled his eyes. “Oh, she’ll figure it out herself if she hasn’t already. I can’t be a man committed to only one lady.”
We shared a laugh, the kind that felt like it could rid me of all the tension that had built up throughout the day. “You’re a playboy, the greatest of your kind,” I teased him, nudging him with my shoulder as we walked toward the parking lot.
Just then, I spotted Bethany walking past us, her head down, obviously trying to ignore us. Sandro and I shared a look, and we both pretended like we hadn’t seen her. I couldn’t deny the thrill of that moment-the way her mood had shifted from fierce to defeated.
“She reminds me of Sophia, the one I had a thing with at the bar,” Sandro joked as we climbed into the car. “She must have thought I was going to take her to the moon and stay there with her. Tiny little thing,” he chuckled, his laughter infectious.
As we drove off, I let the window down, allowing the cool breeze to rush in. I felt almost free for the first time in days. Yet a lingering heaviness accompanied that freedom. The reality of Bethany’s threat still nagged at me.
On our drive, something caught my eye-a girl on a bicycle, struggling with the pedals.
“Sandro, look! It’s Nadia!” I exclaimed, recognition sparking a smirk on my face. “We should stop by and help the poor girl.”
Sandro glanced over, almost in disbelief. “You’re kidding, right?” he responded, “You’re not seriously thinking about helping her, are you?”
“Of course not!” I replied with a chuckle, but I saw in his eyes that he entertained the thought. “Seriously, let’s get some entertainment.”
We stopped right in front of her, and I got out of the car. As soon as Nadia spotted me, her already awkward biking stance took a turn for the worse. She tried to accelerate out of the way, but-BAM! She lost her balance and fell right over, crashing onto the grass beside the road.
I burst into laughter, thoroughly enjoying this spontaneous moment of chaos. “Are you good over there? I know you missed our dicks inside of you.” I called out, the humor practically bubbling out of my gut.
Nadia pouted, her cheeks flushed as she tried to regain her composure. She just got up and scrambled to pick up her bike.
Returning to the car, I slid into the passenger seat beside Sandro, still laughing. “I enjoyed it,” I said, wiping a tear from my eye.
I was doing the best I could to not feel anything, especially after what Nadia said to Jack, but I still could not push the idea away that we had dealt with Nadia a great deal.
“You can bet I did too,” Sandro replied, laughing in return as he revved the engine.
“What’s the plan for tonight?” I asked him.
“What about a night out with some girls?” he suggested.
“Sounds tempting. It’s been a while since I screwed one.”
“We can even make it more spicy!” he suddenly said.
“What have you got?” I asked, curious.
“Screwing Nadia wouldn’t be a bad idea.”